


Who Framed Ianto Harkness-Jones

by caz251



Series: reel-torchwood [2]
Category: Torchwood
Genre: Community: reel_torchwood, F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-08
Updated: 2013-01-08
Packaged: 2017-11-24 05:00:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 17
Words: 16,970
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/630686
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/caz251/pseuds/caz251
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When a man is shot dead after being captured in some semi-intimate pictures with Jack Harkness-Jones Ianto Harkness-Jones delves becomes the prime suspect in a murder investigation. This fic is written for reel_torchwood and is based on the film Who Framed Roger Rabbit written so as to give the story a Torchwood twist.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> I don't own Torchwood or who framed roger rabbit.

Two Empires Once Did Stand

Their Rulers Majestic And Grand

Torn Asunder Due To Murder Rife

Underlings Left To Go Through Strife

Then A Barmaid With Great Brains

Did Release Them From Their Chains

Capturing Who By The Murder Done

The One Left Holding The Smoking Gun


	2. Chapter 1

Jack Harkness-Jones hated Harold Saxon with a passion, there was something about the man that made his skin crawl. The man was devious and he had the ability to hit Jack where it hurt most, his husband. Harold Saxon, or as he was sometimes referred to as by friends 'The Master', was the owner of Master Productions, a film and animations company, he was also his husbands boss. Ianto Harkness-Jones had worked for Saxon for over ten years in various roles, it had been through his job with Saxon that they had met.

Ianto had only been with the man six months at the time, working as a runner, when one of the cast members from the film being made disappeared. Ianto had been sent to find her and bring her back using any means necessary. He had eventually found Myfanwy outside of the studios lying on her back with Jack crouched over her scratching her belly, the brown beagle making a noise of contentment. The dog had refused to leave the man so Ianto had been forced to bring the man with him, just to keep the dog happy.

Myfanwy had clearly been taken in by Jack and he had seen the dog as a way to get closer to Ianto. Myfanwy had been brought by Saxon from the pound and Ianto had been the one taking care of her so that Saxon didn't have to pay anyone for the use of their pet. Jack had managed to make a deal with Saxon so that he could have Myfanwy as his pet, but that he wouldn't charge Saxon a fee for her usage in the film. Ianto had been sad to see Myfanwy go, she had been good company, but he still got to see her. Jack had used his ownership of the dog to his advantage, inviting Ianto for walks in the park, using the time to get to know the other man. They had quickly become friends and then more, eventually marrying after two years together.

Over the years Ianto's career had progressed and five years previously Ianto had taken the part of the voice of the newest animation star. The Rodger Rabbit cartoons were instant hits and Ianto loved his job. The Master was using the fact that Ianto loved his job as leverage over Jack. Jack was strongly against blackmail, it was a tactic he would never use and wouldn't normally give in to, but it was his husband's happiness on the line. He knew and so did Saxon that he would do anything for his husband, even to do what Saxon wanted of him.

He had no doubt that Ianto would be pissed at him when he found out what he had done, not to mention that he was putting two decades worth of friendship at risk, but he wouldn't risk Ianto's career. All he had to do was arrange a situation between him and his boss that would cause embarrassment if photographs of the situation appeared in the wrong hands. Saxon was blackmailing him to get the means to blackmail his boss. It was something that he would never have believed possible if he wasn't intimately involved in the situation. There had always been some bad blood between The Master and John Smith, his boss, but he'd never thought that Saxon would have resorted to blackmail. He couldn't help but wonder though what it was that he wanted John to do that he would go to all the trouble of blackmailing him for it.

John Smith was an overly cheerful and rather manic man, who owned as much of the entertainment scene as Harold Saxon did, however his empire was more in the area of live entertainment than Saxons. One of John's many ventures was a club where acts of all types could perform, he was one such performer, a job that he liked, but one he could easily give up if necessary. He had no need for money, but worked there because he enjoyed himself, and as a favour to John, who had been his friend for close to two decades. They had met when Jack had been travelling through Europe, he'd got himself in a dangerous situation and the other man had patched him up, something they had found he had talent at; Jack personally called the other man The Doctor as a result of that first meeting.

He was worried that he may lose his friendship with the other man over this, but he also knew that the Doctor knew of his devotion to his husband, it had definitely been noticeable over the years. Once he had started performing in one of John's clubs he had been slated for his act in many of the newspapers and rumours and slurs were cast against both him and Ianto. It had gotten so bad at one point that it had started to have a negative affect on Ianto's work life that Jack had offered to quit. Ianto had disagreed with the idea and had insisted that Jack continue with his act, as they both knew that it was something that he loved and found in it a sense of release, removing restrictions from his life.

He sighed to himself as he began to get ready, the consequences of the actions he was going to undertake tonight were not something he wanted to think on, he could lose a great friend and potentially his husband, but there was no way he could get out of it. He trusted and respected his husband too much to tell him to quit his job, and knew that if Ianto continued to work for Saxon the man would make his life a misery if Jack didn't do as he had been ordered, either that or follow through on his threat and sack him. There was nothing else for it except to go on stage, give the performance of his life the return to his dressing room to give a performance of another kind, one that he was sure would change his life in one way or another.


	3. Chapter 2

Owen Harper was not a respectable man by any stretch of the imagination, or rather he wasn't anymore. At one point in his life Owen had been as an upstanding citizen and polite man as any private investigator could be. That had all changed however when his brother Rhys had died, Rhys Williams had been a great man, and his partner. They had worked many cases together, and while they had liked a drink or two, neither of them were the excessive drinker that Owen had become. They were brothers through their mother, each of them having a different father, but that had never stopped them from being close. Rhys was the elder of the two and had always looked out for Owen; ever since he had been born Rhys had protected him, something that Owen would never forget.

Owen had never really been able to return the favour, Rhys had been much stronger than he, and always had his back. Owen knew that his brother wouldn't want him to waste his life getting drunk, but his death had hit him hard, mainly because he had felt that it was his fault. They had been out one night drinking, and Owen had left him in the bar, heading home with Toshiko; that had been the last time he had seen his brother alive. His body had been found the next day in a hotel room, his brother had become a statistic, just another victim of the Black Spider, a woman who killed her mates when she had no further use of them.

The woman had never been caught, something that annoyed Owen to know end. Since his brothers death nothing had been the same to him, his feelings of guilt ate at him all the time, his only solace to be found was in a bottle of alcohol. Nothing anyone did could bring him out of his self-loathing, not even Toshiko had managed it, although she was one of the few that he still had any major contact with. That was mainly because she refused to leave him to wallow alone in his self-pity, and not because he was amenable to letting her in.

He didn't work much anymore, while Harper and Williams had been an amazing private detective agency, without Williams it wasn't the same for Harper. There was no longer any fun in the job, he only took a few jobs every now and again so as to be able to pay his bills and to afford to buy himself alcohol. He knew that the way he was living day by day was not the right way, but it was not something he cared to think about. The less he thought about it the less he tried to pull himself out of his funk, his one regret about his situation was they way he treated Toshiko, but even the thought of her and how they used to be were not enough to make him come to his senses.

Jobs were few and far between as it was, after all who really wanted to hire a down and out private investigator, even if they had once been one of the best. Money was always tight at times, jobs paying less and less as he was unable to charge the rates he once did, people didn't believe that his skills were worth that much anymore. That was why he had been surprised to get a call from Harold Saxon's office, a secretary telling him that Mr. Saxon wanted to meet with him. He hadn't heard from Saxon in years, and he would have been glad never to have spoken to him again, but he couldn't just ignore the request for a meeting.

He had made his way to Saxon's studio were the other man was supposed to meet him, but froze as he got there, looking around the area seeing how much it had changed since his brother's death. He had not been here since then, the hotel that Rhys had been found in being the one just across the road. He shook himself out of his reverie and walked straight into the building, making his way to reception, and being led up to Saxon's office. On his way there he was led through the area where they were working on the new Roger Rabbit cartoon, nodding to the cartoonists who were putting together animations. There was a man in a sound box talking into a microphone, a sappy grin on his face, his thoughts obviously not on his work.

Entering Saxon's office it was to find the man in question going over the sound recordings for the film in production, grumbling under his breath as he did so. "Bloody idiot, he's tonally wrong. Should just sack him and get over with."

Owen cleared his throat, he didn't care to hear what the man thought about some sound clips, he just wanted to know why he was here so that he could leave. Saxon turned to look at him, motioning him to sit down, offering him a drink as he did so. Owen accepted the drink, he wasn't going to turn down free alcohol, and took the seat, speaking as he sat, "You wanted to see me?"

Saxon just nodded before he perched on the side of the desk next to him, "Are you still working?" He asked, knowing full well that he was when he could find a client willing to pay him. "I have something I need you to do for me. Jones needs to sort his head out, he's costing me money with his sapping tone of voice at times. He gets like this every year at this time, his anniversary, but his husband isn't the man he thinks he is, he's up to something, or someone. I need you to find out who or what. There's a hundred in it for you."

Owen just nodded his head, it wasn't the type of job he relished, spying on a persons spouse, aiming to gather dirt to bring back, but if it paid the bills he would do it. Even if it did mean working for Saxon and having to enter the one area of town that he avoided like the plague. He left the office with half his payment, intending to visit Toshiko, it was money that he owed her, and he'd need to borrow her camera, his was getting fixed.


	4. Chapter 3

Harold Saxon wasn't a nice man by any stretch of the imagination, and he really didn't care about stepping on people's toes or hurting their feelings, he was a business man, he had a business to run, hurt feelings only got in the way. He did feel a slither of guilt though for the events he was putting in motion, now that all the pieces were in place. He knew that Harkness would fall in line, the man would do anything for Jones, everyone knew it, just one little threat in regards to his husband and Harkness would do anything he wanted. He would never really sack Ianto, while only the voice of a cartoon he had a huge following, among both the public and the other members of staff, the man was a huge success; he would be stupid to let him go.

The man was a consummate professional, always turning up to work in a suit, impeccably dressed, even though he himself was never really put in front of a camera. There was also the fact that he was always respectful, and that he still brought him coffee, it was the one thing that he couldn't live with out. He had first discovered the wonders of the mans coffee when he was working for him as a runner, and he had fallen in love there and then, no other coffee had compared. He had told the man as much and even when he was starring as the voice of one of the biggest selling cartoons he still turned up at certain times of the day with a coffee for the boss.

It felt wrong in a way to use him like this, Harper was so sure that the pictures he was going to be taking were for Ianto's sake, trying to save his job, show him what his husband had been up to, making him man up and do his job. But in reality, there was nothing wrong with Ianto's performance, if anything he was ahead of schedule and his work as always was brilliant. He did stop to think for a few moments what affect the pictures may have on the young man's marriage, but it wasn't something he dwelled on. He had to do this, Harkness had been an unwilling tool but he would complete the job. Harper on the other hand was easy to manipulate, give him such a simple job with the biggest pay check he'd had in months riding on it, he wouldn't care what the job really was, all that mattered to him was the money.

The pictures would be just what he needed, John wouldn't be able to do anything but what he wanted him to do with the photos hanging over his head. He needed John's agreement for what he wanted to do and the man was being difficult, so he had had to take appropriate measures to secure what he wanted from life. There was nothing real sinister about his blackmail plans, he just needed the other man to agree to sell his businesses and retire, not because he wanted to buy them, but because he wanted to sell up. If only he had a buyer that would buy just his conglomerate, but unfortunately they would only buy him out if they could buy out John as well, and as always the other man was being difficult.

John had always been the one who insisted that his life was not the best one to lead, about how he sat at the top of his empire, coming up with mad schemes, schemes that John was always having to talk him out of. But now that he wanted to take his advice and see some of the world, explore his surroundings and see what makes the planet so loveable to his friend, said friend is holding out on him. Normally he would have just given up on the idea, it wasn't something he had originally wanted to do with his life, it was something that had occurred to him as a result of John's influence on him, but he found that he couldn't. As much as he loved his empire and many of the things it had brought him, it was tedious.

His life had become stagnant, the same routine over and over again, the drums of life beating to tell him how much he needed a change. That same rhythm over and over, Dum Dum Dum Dum, Dum Dum Dum Dum, those four beats over and over again. They haunted him, wherever he went in the world of his creation they followed him, over the years they had slipped into every production he had ever made in some form or another. It was enough to drive someone mad, and he knew that if he didn't get out of the game and soon, that that someone would be him.

He knew that it was him that the drumbeat was calling to, always him, he was the only one who ever seemed to take notice of it. He had asked many different people but nobody had ever heard it but for him, even those who had put it there, sound effects crews, none of them remembered adding it in, and none of them could hear it now. He was alone in that regard, but if he travelled, he could escape it hopefully, it had only ever shown up in his movies, maybe if he stopped making them it would disappear.

The extents to which he was going for his solitude may seem extreme, but not to him, he had to escape the drums and John even with all his grand gestures of friendship was unwilling to help him escape that which was plaguing him. So he resorted to blackmail, a tactic that he had always thought was below him, intimidation had always worked in the past. It had worked really well, so well in fact that he had never had to resort to blackmail at all. He supposed it could be that he was losing his touch the older he got, the weight of the drums crashing down upon him, or maybe it was what he had been thinking for a while, John knew him too well and that they both knew he would never really hurt him.


	5. Chapter 4

Toshiko was worried, she only had two days to get the money back in the till that she had leant to Owen, her boss would be checking the accounts in a few days and if they were short she just knew that he would fire her. She knew that her job wasn't the greatest, but it was enough for her needs, she had no desire to go and do anything better with her life. Although educated to a high standard she worked as a barmaid, mainly for fun when she had been younger, but she had realised that she couldn't leave her job. Not because of the job itself, it wasn't the most glamorous of jobs that she held, but because of the people. She could easily move away and gain any high paying job that she set her sights upon, she was a very accomplished woman, but she had never really wanted to.

Her grandfather had moved from Osaka when he had been about his age, searching out a new life and had met her grandmother, and had started a family. Her grandfather while getting on in life was willing to help her find any job or anything she wanted out of life, but she preferred to stay in this out of the way bar, mainly because what she wanted he couldn't get for her. She had never told him what it was that she really wanted, because she didn't want to hurt him when he wasn't able to provide it for her, and she knew that it would hurt him if he couldn't. What she really wanted out of life was a future, but a future with one man in particular, Owen Harper.

A future seemed so far out of the realm of possibility with Owen though, at one point it hadn't been and she was sure that they were headed for great things; she had thought that he may even propose to her, but then his brother had been murdered. The future was the last thing that Owen thought about; with her coming in second last she was sure. Now all he thought about was the past when his brother had been alive and trying to find himself in the bottom of a bottle. It wasn't the life she had imagined for herself; even if she did have to work in this bar for the rest of her life it would have been worth it just to spend her life with Owen. However the more time that had passed since Rhys had died the less likely it seemed that they would ever be as they once were. It hadn't just been Rhys that had died that day, but their relationship had died as well, and she mourned the loss of both.

She dragged herself out of her thoughts, turning to serve the customers sat at the bar, only to see Owen rushing in. She knew she shouldn't, he seemed to have no regard for her anymore, but she couldn't stop herself from smiling at the sight of him, she had missed him in the last few days. He sat at the bar in front of her, muttering a quick hello to her before starting to ask whatever favour it was that he wanted of her now. "I need to -" he had started before she cut across him.

"You need. I need the hundred you borrowed from me, if it's not in that till by Friday, I'm out on my ear." She whispered at him harshly, trying not to be heard by the other patrons, it wouldn't do for anyone to find out she had leant Owen money from the till.

"I know. Here." He handed her a check, she looked at it noting the signature, before checking the amount.

"Harold Saxon. You're working for Saxon. This is only half of what you owe me." She knew she was being harsh with him, but she needed that money back and soon. She couldn't help but wonder how he had ended up with a job for Harold Saxon, especially as she knew he had sworn never to enter Saxon's side of town ever again, it had been one of Saxon's hotels that his brother had been murdered in.

"The other half is only a couple of photos away, that's why I'm here, I need to borrow your camera, mine is broken." The man snarked at her, but it lacked any malice, his tone remarkably light, lighter than it had been in a while. She wasn't sure, but maybe his trip to the 'forbidden place' as she had heard him refer to it as was good for him.

She went to get her camera, it hadn't been used in a while, there had been very little happy occasions to use it, the last time was not long before Rhys had died when they had been at the beach for a few days. In fact she was sure that the photos were still on the film, and she told Owen as such when she gave it to him. She ushered him off, not in a mean way, but she wanted him to complete the job and get paid. She knew it was selfish in a way to want him to have to go back to somewhere he had been so happy when he was so miserable, but she needed that money back in the till.

It may do him some good though, to see all the things that he and his brother had enjoyed other than alcohol, hopefully it may drag him out of the depression he's in. After all, it was only his brother who had died, not both of them, although to look at Owen at times you would think otherwise. She sighed as she watched him leave; hopefully this job would help him gain some closure. She knew that he would never overcome his brother's death, but hopefully this would lessen the pain and the guilt, as she knew he still carried it with him. He would never really accept his brother was gone until his killer was brought to justice, something that it seemed would never happen, the Black Spider having managed to keep a low profile where law enforcement were concerned.


	6. Chapter 5

Owen entered the club, The Amazingly Real Dazzling Ingénue Showcase or as it was often referred to as TARDIS Bar, it was somewhere he hadn't been in a while, a favourite place of his and his brother's once they had successfully solved a case. It hadn't changed much over the last few years, the decor almost exactly the same, the owner John Smith not being one to care about immaculate appearances. The doors to the club where still the same two blue doors that looked like they had seen better days with a sign above them saying Police Public Call Box, something many of the clientele had wondered about. He remembered once that Rhys had gone up to John Smith after a few drinks and had called him on his doors, asking him what they were supposed to add to the atmosphere of the club. No-one ever found out what the man had told him, Rhys wouldn't tell, but they had spent a good fifteen minutes laughing about something before Smith had been called away. The interior still had that warm feel about it, the safe feeling the walls gave off was amazing, and Owen felt himself start to relax as he saw the familiar coral.

He took a look around the room, looking both for a table and for John Smith, luckily for him he found them almost together, the table next to the proprietor being empty. He sat down in the seat, leaning his arms on the table and taking a quick look at the stage where too pianists were playing a duet. He remembered him vaguely, they had just been starting out when he had been there last, Donna and Rose, he was sure they were called, but he couldn't be sure. He was just about to call one of the waiters, they were all dressed up in penguin suits, Smith obviously hadn't dropped the formality that the staff had to conform to, but then again he hadn't expected him to have done so, when a waitress appeared at his side.

"Hello, Owen. It's been a long time." The woman spoke, a slightly husky tone to her voice that he ignored instead he turned to look at her.

"Suzie. How are you?" He asked, not because he wanted to know, but rather because he had no idea what else to say to the woman. She was almost the exact same as he remembered her, but she had aged some, and was looking a bit more unhinged than the last time he had seen her. They made small talk for a moment before a rushing towards the stage caught his attention, he turned to look at her questioningly knowing that she'd have an answer for him, especially as John Smith had sat forward in his seat as well as half a dozen or so other men.

"Jessica." She spoke flatly. "It always happens when Mrs. Rabbit goes on stage. Even Mr. Smith seems to perk up when she's on stage, he never misses a night when she's working."

"Jessica Rabbit?" Owen spoke, the question in his voice obvious, he had been away from the scene for a while, but he had never heard of a performer called Jessica Rabbit.

"Oh, yes. You wouldn't know. It's Jack Harkness-Jones' act, it sickens me. All these men lusting over him in female form, he's making objects of us." She snorted, muttering to herself. "Jessica Rabbit is his/her stage name. He used to use just Jessica, but when his husband became the voice of Roger Rabbit someone suggested he give himself a last name."

Owen let out a short sigh at Suzie's words; the woman was insane at times, especially when it came to men and them objectifying women. He tuned her out, turning towards the stage to get a look at this Jack Harkness-Jones who was apparently up to no good behind his husbands back. He saw a long leg protruding from behind the thick velvet curtain before the curtain opened a little and a person made themselves known. The man or woman, or whatever the performer should be referred to as started to walk down the stage towards the audience, hips swaying as she sang.

The long dress they wore split allowing the audience to see two of the most perfect legs Owen had ever seen, whether it was on a man or woman didn't matter they were spectacular. Jessica made her way down the stairs from the stage and into the crowd, walking around the audience and giving a more up close and personal performance at times, even going as far as to dance on John Smith's table. Owen now understood what Harold Saxon had been talking about, there was no way that this was all an act, this Jack guy was definitely not as good a loving husband as his husband thinks he is. Owen couldn't help but feel sorry for the guy, having such a beautiful partner only to be blind to all their faults, he was just glad that he didn't have that problem.

He watched the rest of Jessica's performance, watching as John Smith drank the rest of his banana daiquiri and left as soon as 'Jessica' left the stage. Owen drained the rest of his beer before bidding Suzie a goodbye; hopefully she would forget having seen him completely, while she had been good for a bit of fun a few years ago he really didn't want to open that whole can of worms again. He then left the main part of the TARDIS, weaving through the myriad of corridors to get to the dressing rooms, which if he remembered correctly were not far past the wardrobe.

Owen found the dressing room that belonged to Harkness, it was obvious due the opulence of the door, only the best would be given to the star of the show. The small bunny rabbits in stars went a long way to giving away the identity of the rooms owner. He looked through the small glass panel in the door, noting that both Jack and Smith were in there. He tried to get a decent angle to take a picture when he was grabbed from behind, the next thing he knew he was being thrown into the alleyway outside of the club. Luckily though the window that faced out into the alleyway was the one from 'Jessica's' dressing room, he hid out of sight, snapping as many pictures as he could without being caught.


	7. Chapter 6

John Smith wasn't an idiot, far from it, some even believed him to be a genius, something he neither confirmed nor denied. He knew that something was going on, he had done for a while, that evening had just solidified his concerns. He knew that someone had got to Jack, the man wasn't one easily shaken, but someone had done something to set him off his stride. The man was jittery and nervous and he knew that in some way that it had something to do with him, everything was adding up to point towards him. When Owen Harper had walked into TARDIS he had realised that he was being set up, there was no way that the other man would have come out of his self-imposed exile, especially not to the one part of town that he had avoided for the last few years. No, the only reason that Harper would be in his club was for a job. He let out a small sigh as he walked to Jack's dressing room after his performance, he understood the play at work here, but decided to let it go on, it wasn't as if it could hurt.

He knew that the Master was behind this, the plan just screamed the other mans name, and he was one of the few people that he knew would be able to hold something over Jack's head that could convince him to involve himself in something like this, even as unwilling as he appeared to be. It had to be him, he was one of the few that had the ability to stop Ianto from getting there to meet him tonight, but obviously for his own reasons, something to do with him and Jack. Harry's plan was probably very simple, the other man having at least learnt over the years that the harder and more complicated the plan is the more chance the plan itself has of failure. Harper was more than likely just to take pictures of him in and Jack in a somewhat compromising position, and probably hadn't even been told the real reason as to why. Jack had more than likely been told to make it look like they were intimate, not too much, but enough that if it ever got out to a paper that there would be scandal. Harry would then more than likely hold the pictures over his head, threatening to show them to the papers and ruin Jack and Ianto's marriage to force him to sell his empire and travel with him. The whole idea was rather insane, but rather Harry at the same time, and while it was devious, it was also rather endearing at how far the other man would go to get him to leave with him.

There was something coming though, something that he could feel just on the outside of his mind, the sense that there was something coming for him. It wasn't anything he could prove, but he was almost positive that a great silence was headed his way, and the thoughts of what that could mean for him were terrifying in a way. He tried to put it out of his mind, but it was impossible, so for the past few weeks he had been making plans, he had all his affairs that he had to set in order, because the feeling he had told him that he would not survive the oncoming storm that was sure to hit soon.

He knocked on Jack's dressing room door and waited for the other man to answer, allowing him into the room, he didn't speak but made his way straight to the old gramophone that Jack kept in the room and put some music on. He gave a hesitant smile to the other man, he knew that Harper wouldn't be far behind him and that he would have to be ready to put on the show of a lifetime. Whatever actions that were portrayed didn't matter, he knew that Harper would capture them all on camera, however he knew that with the music and by using low voices that Harper wouldn't be able to hear what they said so he was free to explain the situation to Jack. He took a seat, indicating that Jack should as well before he began to speak, grabbing hold of Jack's hands as he did so. He ran his fingers along Jack's hands in an intimate, but very specific manner, the man looking at him in shock; they both knew that he had no romantic feelings for Jack, his behaviour now unbelievable to his friend.

"We're being watched." He whispered, "Play along. I know what Harry has you doing, it's okay, don't worry about it. There are some things I need to tell you and you need to listen."

Jack looked at him through the fake eyelashes he wore before giving him a coquettishly Jack smirk indicating that he should continue. He bit back a smirk, it never really suited his face, Jack was perfect for this kind of scam, Harper would never know the difference between the two of them and a couple partaking of an affair. He lent forward tucking the strand of hair from the wig behind Jack's ear before starting to whisper to him.

While he was pretty sure that Harper wouldn't be able to hear them, that didn't mean they shouldn't take any extra precautions, he knew that things were going to change soon and rather quickly and he needed Jack to be prepared for when that happened, after all the other man was going to have to take charge of everything. He informed the man that Harry's petty scheme wouldn't go anywhere; he knew what he was up to and what he wanted and that it would happen over his dead body, there were too many things going on for him to do as Saxon wanted. He didn't tell Jack what it was that Harry wanted however, that was private between the two of them, and as much as Jack was a good friend to him he really didn't want to get into a conversation about his and Harry's on and off again relationship.

Instead he told him that he had put plans into place if the worst came to the worst and that he and Ianto would always be his friends no matter what happened. He couldn't tell his friend that he feared for his life as the other man would insist that he stay with him to protect him and he couldn't take the chance that something would happen to Jack as well. The other man was his back up plan, even if he didn't know it, something he wouldn't know unless he died. He waited until he knew that Harper was gone, before he insisted that Jack keep something for him, knowing that it would fall into the right custody through the actions he had set in motion that very evening, and that hopefully everything would be okay.


	8. Chapter 7

Ianto Harkness-Jones was annoyed, no not just annoyed, he was pissed. He should have left work hours ago, but Harold Saxon had called a meeting, one that in Ianto's mind was utterly pointless. He had places that he needed to be, Saxon's office definitely not being the place, and he felt for sure that Saxon was holding him back deliberately, but for what reasons they may be he couldn't fathom. He knew the other man must have something going on, he always had a scheme or two going, but Ianto wanted left out of them, and he had thought that Harold had respected that decision.

If only the man had chosen another night he wouldn't have minded so much, but he was meant to be at TARDIS tonight watching Jack perform, although that wasn't his only reason for going there tonight. He had a meeting of sorts with the Doctor, or rather he had had a meeting, he was over an hour late by now at least but he couldn't be sure. No matter how annoying the meeting was, it would be impolite to check his pocket watch for the time, he had to at least make it seem like he was listening and was semi-interested in what was being said.

He knew that he could speak to John another night, any night in fact, they were friends after all, but John had wanted to speak to him without Jack being present, so when he was on stage was the best time. It wasn't that they were trying to hide things from Jack, they both trusted him, but there were times when both of them needed a bit of intelligent conversation without Jack to interrupt them. Ianto personally didn't mind his interruptions, but even after having been witness to them for years the Doctor always seemed to get flustered by the way Jack and Ianto interacted with each other. Conversations between them were much easier to have without Jack for that purpose, otherwise John almost always got embarrassed, something that was sweet in a way, but not conducive to conversation.

There was also the fact that they tried to exclude Jack from some of their conversations to protect him, that's not to say that he needed protecting, but rather that it was something that they both did instinctively. They both loved him in their own way, and would do anything for him, including deceiving him to protect him. They both knew that Jack worried, he worried a lot, especially about Ianto and the Doctor, all because of an incident before he and Jack had met. Jack and the Doctor had been travelling for a bit, or rather the Doctor had been travelling with a young woman called Martha and they had picked Jack up as a stray. They had known each other before and had travelled together previously, but they had parted company on bad terms. Everything had been going well until he and the Doctor had got ill, Martha had done everything she could, she had gone to end of the world and back it had seemed before she found them some help. Jack had recovered quickly, but the Doctor was still recovering months later. Jack had become protective of the other man throughout the whole experience, especially when he found out that it had been something that he had passed onto the Doctor.

Ianto came out of his thoughts as Saxon started to wrap up the meeting only to notice Harold's PA Lucy entering the room, a man following behind her. He recognised the man almost immediately, he had been friends with the other man's brother. He stood up to leave, knowing that whatever Harold had hired Owen for was probably something that he didn't want people to know about. He was surprised therefore when Owen spoke to him instead of Saxon.

"I'd stay if I were you, Jonesy." Owen spoke, sounding vaguely sympathetic, something entirely out of the norm, even before Rhys' death.

He and Owen had never got on well despite his friendship with Rhys, or more to the point, because of his friendship with Rhys. Owen had always believed that he had been trying to take his brother away from him, which meant that he took an instant dislike to Ianto. At one point Owen had tried to become friends with him to please his brother, but despite that fact that he was older than him, Ianto had still found Owen to be too immature for his tastes. The fact that Owen was being somewhat nice to him was very unsettling, and the fact that he'd asked him to stay made him want to run, run from whatever it was that was making Owen be nice to him, he knew that it couldn't be something good.

He sighed but sat back down waiting to see whatever bomb it was that Owen was about to drop. The other man pulled an envelope out of his coat and handed it to Saxon, who opened it and looked through whatever the photos were, before he handed them over. Ianto ignored the looks of pity on both the other men's faces, instead focusing on the pictures in his hands. He saw them for what they were, not what Owen thought they were at least, he knew his husband and he knew his friend, and while they loved each other they weren't in love with each other. Ianto looked at each photograph individually, staring at them for a long time in silence, looking for something, something that would tell him what the hell was going on.

He knew that both Owen and Harold were waiting on him to get angry or breakdown, staring at him waiting for when the realisation of what was going on sunk in. He had no intention of giving them such a reaction but when he finally put together all the pieces he couldn't stop himself from letting out a sharp "NO", the sound reverberating around the room. The other two stared at him thinking that he had finally cottoned on to the fact that his husband was playing him for a fool, when in actual fact he was horrified by what the Doctor was telling him.

They had worked out a way to share information with each other without Jack's knowledge if necessary and he had never thought that they would ever need to use it. The fact that the Doctor was using it now was unsettling, especially after all the other man had told him recently. The man had been sure that everything was coming to an end, even though he wouldn't tell him much he had pleaded for him to be ready for that moment, that Jack would need him. John had contacts all over the world, he had spent so much time travelling that he had made many allies, and quite a few enemies, but he'd told him that someone had informed him that his song was ending.

They had discussed it for a while, but they hadn't made much sense of it, except that things were coming to an end. Ianto hadn't wanted to believe it, after all someone on another continent tells you you're going to die and you believe them, but the Doctor had been convinced. He had told Ianto that he himself had felt something change, and how a silence was coming and coming fast. The Doctor was sure that that silence was coming and from what Ianto saw in the pictures he could tell that the other man thought that it would be tonight. One of the pictures showed a document sat on the table between them, and John's hand gestures told him what he needed to know. Whatever that document was it was now in Jack's custody and Ianto had to get it, he knew that only he and the Doctor knew where Jack would hide anything important.

Harold brought him out of his thoughts, pressing a tumbler into his hands, he looked at it dispassionately before knocking it back quickly and leaving the room, the photographs sat on the table in front of where he had been sat, the empty glass next to them. He had to get to TARDIS, he had to find whatever that document was, find the Doctor, then he had to find Jack. He was pretty sure that the first and third things on his list would be the easiest, the Doctor if he thought the end was near would try to stay away to protect them.


	9. Chapter 8

Owen Harper felt guilty, not something that he usually felt, especially not on a snoop job, but the fact that he had had to deliver those photos to Ianto made a feeling of guilt stir within him. He knew that he could have not given him the photos and let him carry on obliviously to his husband's infidelity, something that didn't seem right to him, but giving him those photos had seemed wrong as well. He knew that he had had no other option, he had needed the money, but something just didn't sit right with him. There was nothing he could do about it however, so he might as well try to forget it.

He had gone to bed the previous night putting it out of his mind completely, but upon waking that slither of guilt had been back, and a police officer on his doorstep. He knew Andy well, they had crossed paths a few times, the life of a private detective often means cooperation with the police and Andy was always one of the more cooperative. The man had looked around his office/home before sighing, and informing him that they needed to take a ride. Unsure as to what was going on Owen complied with the other man's request, but issued one of his own, wanting to know what the hell was happening and why the police had been at his door.

He hadn't expected the answer he was given, not by a long shot, Ianto Harkness-Jones a murderer, it was something that seemed so unbelievable to him. He couldn't believe it, he had known Ianto for years, even though they had never liked each other he knew that the other man was no murderer, if anything the man was too soft. People were often driven to remarkable lengths when they found their spouse cheating on them, but Owen had done enough snoop jobs, informed enough husbands and wife's of their spouse's deceit to be able to tell the difference. Ianto wasn't angry, he hadn't been, if anything the man had been shocked, worried and unsettled, but angry he definitely hadn't been.

He was taken to John Smith's office; somewhere he had never been before, the other man having never having needed the use of his services. It was a nice place, the decor simply stunning, the room would have been perfect if it weren't for the dead body on the floor. There was no sign of a struggle, no sign of forced entry; everything looked immaculate except the body that lay there. He agreed with Andy that it had definitely been someone that he knew that was responsible, but he was still unsure that it had been Ianto; the other man just didn't have the balls. He knew that may seem harsh, but Ianto had never been one to fight, he was more of a diplomat than a soldier, something that helped him to balance his other half.

He could see the hole where the bullet had gone into the body, a direct hit, whoever it was had been facing him, and someone that the other man had underestimated, an underestimation that had cost him his life. He looked in the direction from where the shot had been fired, the only thing there being the drinks cabinet. He wasn't a copper but he was a private investigator, and he hadn't succeeded in the job by being stupid. Whoever had shot Smith had been stood at the drinks cabinet, it had been someone who he had trusted enough to make him a drink, who had then turned and shot him.

He stepped towards the cabinet, and was about to reach out towards the two glasses sat there when he felt something hit his hand. He looked at his hand before allowing his gaze to linger on the umbrella for a moment before looking at the person holding it. Standing there throwing him a look that could freeze the bollocks off a bull was a woman with dark hair, dressed completely in black. She looked around the room for a moment and Owen copied her actions, hoping to catch Andy's attention in the hopes that he'd help him out of whatever situation it was that he had gotten himself into this time.

Luckily for him Andy did spot his predicament and came to his rescue, introducing him to the woman holding him captive with her umbrella. Apparently she was some hotshot judge that had got the position a few years ago after spreading a whole tonne of money around. Her name was Gwen Cooper and she was apparently a tough case to crack, never seen to let anyone close, all relationships were on her terms and there was no-one that had appeared to get past her barriers. Owen knew when he was beat, and while he may not be yet, he had a feeling that going up against this woman would be bad for his health. HE quickly explained to the others his thoughts before stating that he was sure that this had nothing to do with Ianto, the other man just wasn't a killer.

Andy had driven him back home, dropping him on his street before driving off. Owen sighed as he walked into his block; he knew that this was his fault, if he hadn't taken those pictures this wouldn't be happening. Toshiko may have lost her job because of the money she leant him, but he wouldn't have been responsible for the manhunt that was commencing for Ianto Harkness-Jones. He sigh became a groan as he saw the figure outside his front door, he really wasn't in the mood to deal with anyone, but noticing who it was he realised that he had no real choice. He had taken those pictures and it was his fault Ianto was on the run, he would at least have to speak with his husband. Standing outside his door dressed in a full suit was Jack Harkness-Jones, a glare on his face as he leant against the door.

He moved aside to allow Owen to open the door before he followed him in, waiting until he began to speak then punched him. Owen couldn't believe it, he knew he should have expected it, Jack was no pansy after all, despite the fact that he often dressed as a woman. "I love my husband Harper, do you know what you've done, everything you've ruined. He's innocent, and you better hope everything works out Harper, or paying your next bill will be the least of your worries."

Owen looked up at him only to see the back of him as he stormed out of the room. Toshiko stood in the doorway staring at him in pity before moving to help him stop the blood that was flowing from his nose.


	10. Chapter 9

Ianto Harkness-Jones was in deep, this shouldn't have happened, he knew that someone was pulling the strings behind everything, and he knew, he didn't know how, but he knew that it wasn't Saxon. John had been convinced that he was going to die, he just hadn't thought it would be so soon, and he certainly hadn't thought that he would be the main suspect. He knew that all the evidence pointed to him, or all the logical common sense evidence, he had no idea about the physical evidence. His guilt was being based on the fact that he had seen a few pictures that appeared to show that his husband and John were having an affair. It was obvious to the masses that he couldn't handle the betrayal so he had killed his love rival, and he knew that with all the scandal that that was the version of events everyone would believe unless he could prove otherwise, which without an alibi would be impossible.

He knew that his actions in Saxon's office the previous night would be held against him and the fact that he had ran out on them could be seen as him running off to murder John. He almost screamed in frustration, but he knew that that would draw attention to his position so he kept silent, instead screaming mentally, hoping that if he closed his eyes that when he opened them again it would all just be a dream. He knew it was wishful thinking, John was gone and he wouldn't be back and he knew that if she had her way that Judge Cooper would make sure he couldn't come back either. He would either be executed for John's murder or imprisoned for life, neither of which options really appealed to him. There was nothing that he could do about it at the moment though, what he really needed was a miracle, something that he was sure would never happen. He would just have to bide his time until Owen got back, and then he could find out what had actually happened, he had seen the man being taken away by a police officer earlier when he had been sneaking into the building.

Although they had caused him so many problems, he hoped that Owen wasn't implicated because of the photographs; it was bad enough that he was wanted for murder, he didn't need Owen getting in trouble because of it. He knew whoever it was that had killed John was playing a long game, the man himself had told him as much, he had been feeling the change for a while, that little shift that had told him that something was coming, it hadn't appeared overnight. There was nothing that he could say that would prove that though, even if anyone believed him that John had known that someone was just waiting for the right time to kill him, that wouldn't stop them from looking at him as the murderer.

He could almost cry if he didn't have to worry about giving away his position, hiding in Owen's kitchen wasn't the best of hiding places, even if the place was empty. He didn't know after all if the man would come back alone or if the police would think of his connection with Ianto through his brother and send a guard with him. He really hoped that the other man was alone when he came back, he couldn't risk getting caught, but he knew he needed help.

He had no idea who to turn to, he knew that Saxon would be no help to him, regardless of the fact that he knew the man had set it up for those pictures to be taken, he knew that beneath all the schemes that he would never really do anything to hurt John. The relationship between them may have been incomprehensible to some, even to themselves at some times, but Ianto just knew that they fit together. Regardless of the fact that they were always fighting about stupid things and at times spent more time apart than together that they were meant for one another. Even though they hid their relationship and not many people knew about them, those that did could see that they fitted each other perfectly, even Jack although the other man was loathe to admit it. His husband really hated the idea of the two of them together, his protectiveness of John rising up too often; he had never thought that Harold was good enough for him. No, Saxon would be no help, he was sure that if he went to him the other man would turn him over to the judge straight away.

Thoughts of John and his relationship with Harold made his mind turn towards his own partner, did his husband believe in his innocence, or did he think that he had murdered their friend. He knew that he could deal with Saxon's accusations, while he had worked for the man for years the man didn't know him. If Jack thought he had done it however he didn't know what he would do, his husband was everything to him, he couldn't lose him, not on top of losing a friend like John.

He heard the door open and he listened at the door, hoping he could catch any noise in the next room, he needed to know if Owen was alone or not. The next thing he heard was the sound of flesh hitting flesh before he heard his husbands voice, "I love my husband Harper, do you know what you've done, everything you've ruined. He's innocent, and you better hope everything works out Harper, or paying your next bill will be the least of your worries."

He couldn't help but smile at the thought of Jack punching Owen, even though none of this was really his fault, he wanted to go out and speak to him, but he knew it was too risky. If anyone saw Jack at Owen's longer than it was necessary to give him a piece of his mind they might get suspicious and suspicion was the last thing he needed at the moment. He heard Jack leave and a soft feminine voice talking to Owen, he sat on the kitchen floor before his legs gave out as he realised that Jack believed him, he wasn't alone, his husband knew he was innocent. He waited until the soft voice retreated and he heard the main door close before making his presence known, hoping that Owen would help him prove his innocence.


	11. Chapter 10

He was a bastard, he knew that, John had known that, hell everyone had known that. However much of a bastard he may be though, this was not what he had wanted to happen, far from it in fact. All he had wanted to do was force John to do as he wanted for a change, just for once he wanted things to go his way. The other man had always come out on top all the time, it was supposed to have been his turn for a change. He had intended to threaten to show Ianto the pictures so that John would agree to sell up and travel with him; he knew he would do anything to stop jack and Ianto's marriage from being compromised. Then once he had agreed they would both sell their empires, he'd destroy the photographs and they could go off and travel together.

This wasn't supposed to have happened though, if only he had let Ianto leave before Harper had shown up, he would never have seen the photos and everything would have been fine, but once again his plans failed. He always forgot to take someone or something into account, something that John had never failed to point out to him, something he would never do again. He missed him already, the other man was his, no matter how much he would deny it at times, but he had been his just as he was John's. Now that was all over, John was dead and it was partially his fault, if only he had never thought up the stupid plan to blackmail him, if he'd maybe tried harder to talk him into leaving this wouldn't have happened.

He had thought that Ianto was their friend, granted he didn't know him as well as John had, the other man being much more social and outgoing than he was, but even he could tell that Ianto had cared for John in his own way. They were friends or so he had thought, but he wasn't sure why the photos had set the other man off so much that he would kill John, they both knew that there was nothing between Jack and John. Hell they both knew that if there was that he would have killed Jack long ago. He just couldn't understand, there was no reason to kill John, unless he hadn't.

He knew that Ianto didn't have the same strong stomach as he or Jack had, Ianto and John had been similar in that way, they were both pacifists in many ways. So what if the other man had nothing to do with John's murder, if the events that had come together last night were two different events that someone had gotten mixed together. He knew that there was something that had been bothering John for a while, he hadn't said anything to him, but that didn't mean nothing big was going on, he knew that they both had their secrets.

He looked up at the clock on the wall, it had been twenty-four hours ago that Owen Harper had walked into his office with those pictures. His whole life had changed in those twenty-four hours, nothing was the same anymore; everything felt wrong. He was off centre, as if his whole life was tilting on a different axis, the world was still spinning round, but he could no longer feel it. The turn of the Earth was different to him now, without John there to hold his hand as it turned, he was alone and the world felt still to him.

Hearing a cough he looked up, and once again Owen Harper stood in his doorway, he knew that nothing good would come of this, that there was a reason that the other man was there. The man walked straight to the drinks cabinet, pouring himself a glass before he turned to look at him, trying to measure him up with one gaze. "Why?" He asked, staring at him as if trying to measure whether or not he answered truthfully, "Why did you have me take those pictures?"

Harold sighed, he didn't want to discuss this, it was private. His reasons were his own and they stumbled into private territory, something that he didn't want to discuss with anyone, let alone a washed up private detective. What could he say anyway, 'Oh I was going to blackmail John into running away with me', the other man wouldn't believe him if he told the truth so why should he. He kept silent, hoping that the other man would take his silence for what it was, a dismissal. He wasn't that lucky however, the man coming to stand in front of him, looking him in the eye, a glint of steel to be found there.

"No, you wouldn't answer, would you. You don't want to incriminate yourself after all." Harper started to speak as he looked around the room, before looking back at him. "Here's what I think, you had me take those pictures, so that Jonesy took the fall when you killed Smith. I may not have been in the game much recently, but even I knew you were trying to get him to sell up, he wouldn't so you killed him, and without a will his empire would be liquidated."

Harold just stared at the other man, it wasn't true he knew that, but because of the personas that he and John had played in public many would believe it if such a story got out. After all he was known to be quite a shark in the entertainment world and if killing someone would get him what he wanted, well many people would think that he'd done it. He hadn't though, no matter what he had done in his life he would never have even attempted to hurt John, well not non-consensually anyway, after all the other man had always enjoyed small doses of pain. Harper's words made it into his brain though, confusing him, John had a will, why would they liquidate his assets. He knew he had a will, they had both written them the same day, John had insisted that they made sure everything was watertight in case anything happened to them.

He was about to refute Harper's claims when he felt it, the pain, a pain that he had never felt before, and would never feel again. He knew in that second that it was all over, that he was dead, there was nothing that he could do, no miracle that would save him. Believe it or not he was happy about that, he would see John again, he wouldn't have to live in an empty existence.


	12. Chapter 11

Jones, not Harkness-Jones, the other man would always just be Jones to him, he had to find him, it was an order. John Hart was someone who never really cared much for orders, instead he would twist them to suit his purposes, always completing the job, but in a way that gave him the most out of it all. But this was one set of orders that he didn't mind carrying out one bit, finding Ianto Jones. He knew that the Judge knew of his personal history or vendetta against the man, and he was pretty sure that that was why he had been chosen for the job, as he wouldn't be lenient and he wouldn't care.

He knew that not caring in this instance might seem rather harsh, especially as he knew that when he caught the other man he would be leading him to execution, but he couldn't bring himself to care. Ianto Jones had been a thorn in his side for years, and he could now do something about him, and legally to boot. Not that he minded undertaking illegal endeavours, but it was so nice to deal with his enemies by turning their own sense of justice against them. Ianto would be dead, and there would be nothing leading back to him in an incriminating manner, after all he was just following the Judge's orders to bring the man in. There was nothing wrong with that, he was just doing his job, the job that the police were unable to do.

After the other man was dead he could then go about taking back what the other man had stolen from him all those years ago, and with Smith out the way as well there was really nothing that would stop him. He knew that when he got Ianto out of the way that everything would fall into place like it should have done all those years ago, he would finally have what was rightfully his. There was no way that Jones was a murderer, but he wasn't going to tell the Judge that, after all why should he, she was doing him the favour of having Jones executed, why should he tell her that she was wrong. The woman really wouldn't like that and after all that she had done for him he really didn't want to upset her, he knew that he wasn't the only member of her personal police force, he knew that there were other assassins that she could and would hire, and that was not something that he would risk.

Once Jones was dealt with he would be able to pick up where he had left off, Jack wouldn't have anyone else to turn to, his precious husband dead and his best friend murdered by his husband. He knew that the other man would be an emotional wreck, just what he needed him to be. He could go in and pick up the pieces, helping Jack through such a difficult time, and the other man would want to thank him, he knew he would. It wouldn't take much persuasion with Jack in such a state for him to welcome him back into his life and things would return to how they should have been before Jack met Ianto Jones.

He and Jack had been together for five years, or to be more precise they had been together for two weeks, but it had felt like five years, to him anyway. He was positive that they had been happy together, he had been at least, and that was all that really mattered. Jack had been the perfect little wife to him, someone that he had not been happy about letting go, but the other man had met Jones and their relationship was over quicker than it had started. He hated Jones for that, he had taken the best thing that he had in his life away from him, and until now he had been unable to do anything about it.

That had all just changed though, and he would be damned if he didn't get Jack back in his life, the man was perfect for him. And he was sure that he had got even better over the years that they had been apart. Knowing that Jack didn't love him didn't stop him from going ahead with his plans, he knew that the man could come to love him in time, that he would love him, just as he loved Jack. But first he had to get rid of Jones, which meant finding the git, something that was proving to be harder than he had thought that it would. It wasn't as if the other man had had the training that he had, there should have been no way for the other man to elude him, but he had done so. It was frustrating, he had tried the places that he was most likely to go, his flat, all his usual haunts, and there was nothing. He had even tried the private detectives office, in the hopes that he had gone to get the other man to help him by using guilt against him, but there was no-one there.

He didn't know where else to look, but he knew that he couldn't give up. Not only did the other man have to be out of the picture entirely for his plan to work, but he knew the Judge would be extremely displeased if he did not deliver her the murderer. She had a reputation of being a cold hard bitch, and that would all disappear if she wasn't seen to have dealt with the murderer of such a high profile man in a swift nature. If it ever got out that the man hadn't been executed straight away because her men couldn't find him, well he shuddered to think what she would do to them. It would be a slur on her record, something that she would not stand for, and he could see her taking it out on those she believed were at fault, and he knew that he would be first.


	13. Chapter 12

Things were finally going her way, everyone would finally get to see Gwen Cooper at her best. Now there was no-one who could stand in her way, or there wouldn't be soon, she only had a few loose ends to tie up. She let a smile cross her face at the thought of the culmination of her plans, she would finally get to see her name in lights. It was what she had been working towards for years now and she would have her way, despite the setbacks that she had encountered.

She had tried very hard over the years to get a job in the entertainment sector, but both John Smith and Harold Saxon had stated that she was talentless and as the men were the foremost authority in the showbiz world no agency would touch her. She had threatened them at the time, not their lives, but their business. She had told them that without her their businesses were nothing, but neither of them would believe her, not that she minded, them not believing her suited her plans perfectly. If they both forgot her she could take them by surprise when her plans came to fruition.

She wasn't the smartest of women, but she was one of the most beautiful and talented. She had to outwit two of the shrewdest minds in the business, and she had no real way of doing it. What she really wanted was to own both their empires, but for that she would need a large amount of capitol. Making enough money to buy them out was simple enough, all she had to do was seduce a few rich men and the world was her oyster. It would be an easy job, seducing a man was something that she could do in her sleep.

As she started her scheme though she came to realise that the men she was sleeping with were of no real use to her, she would have to cultivate a great relationship with them for them to give her the money and she couldn't do that with all of them at the same time. So she started picking targets, starting with the richest first, they had more disposable income, and once she had selected her target she would set to work. At first she just started demanding expensive gifts that she could sell for money when necessary, but she began to like the lifestyle that her friends were providing her. Her first target and the richest was the easiest to convince to do as she wished, and before long he was changing his will and making her the main beneficiary without even thinking about it. He hadn't realised that a week after the new will had gone through without any problems that he was now obsolete in her life, and he most certainly didn't notice the knife that gutted him, due to the post-coital nap that he always seemed to take.

She did this with a few different gentlemen, all of them dying and leaving her a substantial amount of money, all to different names, none of which were her own. She wasn't stupid enough to give any of them her real name, linking herself to the men, even in their wills would be disastrous for her. She had managed to build herself quite the reputation with her kills, all of which were men found in bed having been stabbed after sex. They had even given a name to the figure that she had become, The Black Spider, it was a name that she liked. If she couldn't have her real name in lights, it was nice to at least have a pseudonym in the news, and she was glad that they had chosen a name that fitted so well.

Getting herself a position of power was easy once she had several fortunes to support her. She had started to spread money around, making sure to line the pockets of the right people, and had found herself being named a Judge. She then built a reputation for herself as being a complete hard-ass, it would be such a shock when she started acting for the public to see the different sides of her, but she knew that the public would love her. The Black Spider had virtually gone into retirement, she had no need of the money now, she had quite enough to be going on with and she wanted to keep herself out of the public eye in a way. She couldn't have any suspicion brought upon her, not now that she was such an upstanding figure.

Her last kill before she put away that persona was a private detective, and a real sweet man, but he was also the one person who could expose her, she hadn't been as careful as she had thought and her last benefactor had been using the man to investigate her. She had seen him in a bar and noticed how he started to put everything together, so to take his mind off it she had lured the other man up to a room promising him a night he would never forget hoping that he would forget his suspicions. She then left the room afterwards, the detective's murder being the exact same MO as the other murders she committed.

She had then tried to get Smith and Saxon to sell her their empires. Saxon had been willing to sell everything to her without any problems, but Smith on the other hand was being a pain. The other man refused to sell, and she wouldn't buy one empire without the other, she wanted both. She knew that she would be able to get Saxon on her side pretty easily; she refused to buy him out unless Smith sold her his business as well. She then heard stories of arguments between the two men, and it was obvious to her that Saxon was trying to pressure Smith into selling, but the man wasn't budging. It was then that she decided to take things into her own hands, Smith had no family; neither did Saxon for that matter, so she knew that there was no-one who could claim the companies when they were dead.

Killing Smith had been very therapeutic after all the stress he had put her through over the last few months, even if she had to murder him with a gun instead of her beloved knife. It was the icing on the cake when she found out that Saxon's actions to get Smith to sell had handed her the perfect murderer to be executed in her place. She sent out Hart to find the man, he was her best after all, before going to deal with Saxon. There was no way she could allow him to live, especially not as he had the knowledge that Smith hadn't wanted to sell his business. It would be easier as well to gain control of both companies when their owners were dead, as they would go to auction over which she would preside, in fact she could probably buy them both without them ever going to auction due to her position.

Disposing of Saxon was just as easy, but a lot less fun, she wasn't in the room this time, instead having to shoot him at a distance through a window, she just hoped that she had managed to silence him before he let any pertinent information slip. She had noted from her vantage point that Ianto Jones was in the area, but there was nothing she could do about that without letting on that she was in the vicinity of the murder, not something that she really wanted to do. As soon as she saw the bullet hit its target she scarpered, making sure that she wouldn't be caught at the scene of the crime, especially as that ruddy detective was a witness to the shooting. She didn't know what it was about that family, but they always seemed to be poking their nose into other peoples business.


	14. Chapter 13

Everything was going wrong, none of this should have happened, he just couldn't believe it. John was dead, and everyone was trying to blame Ianto for his murder, something that never would have been true, Ianto hated guns and he loved John as a friend. He also knew that there was no reason to be jealous, they all knew that Jack's feelings for John were only of a familial kind, they were more like brothers than lovers. He couldn't think of anything that he could really do to prove that however, so he had decided to do the one thing that would make him feel better about the whole situation. He had found the person that had taken the pictures that had incriminated his husband in John's murder and punched him, something that felt truly satisfying, before going back to his and Ianto's home.

He was hoping that Ianto would turn up there, even though he knew that it was the last place he would go. Myfanwy sat at his feet as he thought through everything that had happened. His mind on the events of the night before he remembered the document that John had given him. He hadn't read it at the time, he had just hidden it in a safe place as John had asked him to, but maybe it would help now. He left the house heading straight to TARDIS and his dressing room, he had to get that document, maybe he could use it to get the police and that Judge off Ianto's back. He reached his hand beneath the sofa, opening the concealed panel in its base, only to reveal emptiness.

He sat back on the floor in shock, only three people knew about his hiding place in TARDIS, him, John and Ianto, which meant that Ianto had come and removed whatever it was that John had given him. He knew that John wouldn't have taken it back not after he had given it into his safe keeping, but how had Ianto known it was there. He thought about the events of the previous night and realised that it had been sat on the table for a while, before realising that the way that John had touched him had seemed specific and thought out, and that there must have been a reason why. He had known for a while that John and Ianto had been keeping secrets from him, mainly to protect him, but what if this was something to with it. Some secret that had got John killed, and Ianto was about to take the fall for it.

He had to figure it out, his first thought was Saxon, but he realised how stupid the idea was almost as soon as he thought it. While Harold may not be above blackmailing John to get what he wanted, he had to admit that the other man loved him too much to kill him. But maybe the other man knew what was going on, John and Ianto may have tried to protect him, but they wouldn't have though Harold would have needed protecting. He must know something, they couldn't have been trying to work through whatever it was just the two of them, he was positive that Saxon would have known.

With that in mind he made his way to Harold's office, hoping that the other man would have the answers that he was seeking, although even if he didn't he realised that despite the man's actions in the last few days that Jack should at least try and comfort him. He had known the Doctor for years, but John and Harold had been friends since they were children, and from the way the Doctor had told it once, on and off lovers since their teens, he knew that the other man was probably in a state of some sort, whether he would be drunk or apathetic or even just angry he had no idea, but he was determined to find out.

Approaching Harold's building he caught sight of a figure stood by a car, the figure itself unmistakeable to him. He was about to rush forward and drag the man into an embrace when he realised that they didn't have time for that, especially when he heard a gunshot. Knowing that Ianto had heard it to he acted quickly, grabbing the stun gun he always carried he switched it to the highest setting before pressing it to Ianto's neck, catching him as he fell. Having walked there he opened the back door of the car Ianto had appeared to have been guarding, placing his husband in the back seat, he made his way towards the drivers seat, gun still in hand.

Hearing a noise behind him he turned, only to see Owen Harper standing with a gun pointing straight at him, "Where's Ianto?" the man barked at him as he walked closer.

Looking at him Jack noticed genuine concern in his eyes so he nodded towards the back seat of the car, allowing the man to disarm him. He caught the shocked look on the man's face when he realised that he was armed only with a stun gun. He was then told to get into the car, getting in the passengers seat was an altogether new experience, Ianto normally let him drive. He saw Owen shooting worried looks at Ianto in the mirror and decided to relieve the man of his worry.

"He'll be fine. I had to use the highest setting, he's built up a tolerance to it, but he should be up and about soon." Jack spoke quietly.

Owen looked at him a look of perplexity crossing his face, "Built up a tolerance? How?" Owen asked before muttering, "I don't want to know.", when he caught the perverted grin that spread across his face.

Jack just smiled before giving Owen directions to one of John's properties that was closed for renovation, a property that he had a key for. He had some suspicions that this was someone with a grudge of some sort as the murder of both John and Harold within twenty-four hours of each other was too much of a coincidence to be one. He knew that there was more to this, but until Ianto came round they had no way of getting more answers, Owen had confirmed that Ianto was playing things pretty close to his chest and hadn't given him many details. Once they were settled in the old cinema Owen had excused himself to make a call, explaining that a friend of his may have more luck tracking certain information down than he would.


	15. Chapter 14

Toshiko had been going over every piece of information that she could since she had left Owen earlier that day. She had spent some time in the records centre looking into everything she could find on both John Smith and Harold Saxon, as both were intertwined in many things together. She had found records of a proposed takeover of Master Productions, one that would only go ahead if Smith was to sell his empire as well. She knew that such a deal was unusual, just because she was a barmaid didn't mean she was brainless. When she tried to investigate further however she had come up against a brick wall, something that annoyed her, she was so used to being able to find any information she wanted when she wanted, even secure information, but this she couldn't. All that she was able to find out was that the proposed takeover was by a company called The Black Star Corporation.

That was were the trail seemed to end in the local records office, almost as if Black Star was an outsider, but she wouldn't think that two of the richest locals would sell up to an outsider. From what she could make out from the information Smith wasn't selling, something that she believed wholeheartedly. The other man was ruthless when it came to business, it was all a song and dance to him really, but if you messed with him, he'd take you down. She remembered the only time she had actually met the man, he'd been coming out of a theatre of his muttering about some pig that was supposed to be a mermaid and hadn't seen her, he'd walked right into her in his absentmindedness. He couldn't have been more apologetic though, and had even gone so far as to give her two tickets to one of his shows as an apology, and he'd been right the pig had looked nothing like a mermaid.

She wasn't sure why she was so eager to solve this case, maybe it was because of the conversation she had overheard between Owen and Jack Harkness-Jones, or maybe it was because it just seemed wrong to her, but she was determined to find out what was going on. She knew that Owen was bound to be feeling guilty, and she didn't want him to retreat into himself once more, he had only recently started to come out of his funk a bit, and she really didn't want him to climb back into his shell. There was also the fact that if she went with her gut instinct, not something that she ever really ignored, then Ianto Harkness-Jones was innocent and Judge Cooper would be executing an innocent man.

She had been working on the problem with no luck until she decided to look into other company takeovers recently, and that's when she made the connection. Quite a few companies had come under the new banner of the Dark Star Corporation over the last few years, all of which had been the property of the victims of the Black Spider. Whoever it was that had been the beneficiary of each victims will had then sold any remaining companies to the Black Star Corporation. It seemed rather odd, so she began to look at the company takeovers in more detail, they had all gone through at the same time, every single one had been bought out or signed into the Black Star Corporation on the same day, and it was all presided over by Judge Gwen Cooper.

There was nothing that she could see that would really tie Cooper to anything, but she decided that it would be better to leave no stone unturned so she did a thorough search on the woman. The results turned up something that she had been expecting in a way, but was hoping against. Everything that she had come across so far had tied everything up in circles and knots, but Gwen Cooper seemed to be right in the middle of the whole mess.

After making copies of everything that she needed she headed back to the bar, knowing that if Owen was looking for her that would be the first place that he looked. It would be impossible to go looking for him herself without it seeming suspicious, especially as she had spent nearly the whole day looking into records concerning Saxon and Smith. She was contacted not long after getting back to the bar, the conversation a short one in which Owen only really gave her an address and asked her to meet him. She agreed but informed him that she may be followed, and that he should contact Andy, as she was sure that she knew what had happened the night before.

She had been questioned earlier that day by a man who while quite attractive his abrasive personality diminished his overall attractiveness. He had introduced himself as Captain John Hart, one of Judge Coopers IRT (Investigative Recovery Team), and then started to ask her questions about Ianto Harkness-Jones before asking for the whereabouts of Owen Harper. She had told him exactly what she knew, nothing, but she had a feeling that he wouldn't give up at that, and wouldn't be surprised if he put a tail on her.

She had been correct of course, and not long after she arrived at the old cinema they were interrupted by not only John Hart, but by Judge Cooper as well. It wasn't until now after put together all the clues that afternoon that she realised that she had never seen Judge Cooper in anything but black. The woman had never worn any colour at all that she could remember, not even during the summer months. She was just glad that she had been able to give all the information she had gathered to PC Andy before they had arrived, the man had then retreated into another room to read the information in private. That had been her idea as well, not only so he could read up on what she believed had happened, but so that he could listen in on them in the room. She had been certain that Hart would call in the Judge, the man had been too sure of himself and his achievements not to want an audience as he captured his prey. She had decided to use that to her advantage and confront the Judge while Andy was in the vicinity and able to hear all that was said.


	16. Chapter 15

PC Andy Davidson had read through the information he had been given in shock, he couldn't believe it, but listening in on the conversation in the other room seemed to back it up. The woman was amazing she had not only found the information and then forced a confession out of Judge Cooper. He didn't know what it was that Toshiko had threatened her with, she had spoken rather quietly, but Cooper had sung like a bird. He couldn't believe that someone who he had respected, someone who had held such a prestigious position in society, could have destroyed as many lives as she had, especially as it was all on a self-centred quest for revenge. He had never really understood the phrase 'Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned' but he was pretty sure that he had just become a believer.

When he had come from his hiding place the look on Cooper's face told him that she had expected to get away with it, that she had worked out how to get around everything even as she confessed. He was sure that she would have spread quite a bit of money around to keep things quiet, or she may have just shot everyone that knew the truth; a few more murders wouldn't do much more harm. He could tell that she was considering it anyway, even though she knew that she would have to be quick to take them all out as one of them were sure to take her down if she started to attack.

He looked around the room at the others, they had all lost someone to this woman, except for himself and her personal monkey Hart; he had never liked the man, something about him rubbed him the wrong way. He knew that backup would arrive soon, he had left the order to give him half an hour before sending someone after him, but he didn't know how to go about arresting such a notorious and high profile murderer. It seemed as if everything had changed, and in a way it had, his whole professional world had shifted. He was an officer of the law, taught to follow orders, especially from higher authorities, but he had just learnt how corrupt those authorities were. He had known before of course that those in the positions of power weren't saints, but he had never known any of them to be like Judge Cooper had proved herself to be. The most some of the others had on their records was driving when drunk, parking tickets, and occasionally being caught with a whore, nothing as serious as this.

Handling the situation seemed odd to him, he wasn't sure how to, and hoped that some of his backup came in the form of someone higher up the chain of command, someone who could take control of the situation. He looked up at the sound of gunfire, two different weapons firing almost simultaneously. Cooper had used his time of introspection to clear up some more loose ends, upon realising what she had done it was obvious as to her motivation. Hart knew too much and she no longer had a use for him, so he was surplus to requirements. Either that or she had realised that there was no escaping execution and that she wished it to be on her terms and no-one else, firing at Hart knowing the other mans quick reflexes and the likelihood that he would shoot her before he died.

Suddenly the room was flooded with police, his backup finally arriving, too late of course, but there was nothing that could be done about that. They moved immediately to where Ianto stood with Jack, attempting to cuff him so he could be taken to be executed. Andy sighed, he knew that this was going to take a while, the clear up for this was going to take forever, and the paperwork would probably keep him busy until Christmas. There wasn't anything that he could do about it however, he was the only one who had been privy to the whole sordid story, it was him that would have to complete the paperwork.

The grimace that crossed his face was genuine as he looked at the bodies on the ground in front of him, he just hoped that he wasn't the one held responsible for all this. He indicated that the officer should uncuff Ianto before he began to explain what had happened to the other officers, none of which were superior to him in any way. He would have to retell the story later to his superiors, as well as having to do all the paperwork, but he didn't care as long as he could get out of the building as quickly as possible. The events of the evening making the building seem stifling to him, it was ever the building or the uniform he was wearing, although it could be both. His uniform was no longer a source of pride for him, it now seemed tainted that he was aware of the deceptions of those who were supposed to lead them.

He watched as officers led the others out of the cinema, wishing that he could follow them and escape the web of lies and deceit that seemed to have unfolded around him. The Black Spider really had woven her web tightly around her, obviously in the hopes that if she held it to her it would never be discovered. He wondered what would have happened if things had been allowed to play out a bit longer, whether the Judge would have been brought to justice, or if she would have managed to spin everyone a line and escape. He supposed it didn't matter anymore, it wasn't as if they could change things anyway, he did linger on the thought of the poisonous words that would have flown from her mouth when she realised that both Saxon and Smith had left a will, leaving their Empires to their friends and favourites on staff, the Harkness-Jones'.


	17. Epilogue

Two Years Gone By

Since The Rulers Did Die

Their Chosen Heirs

Share The Empires Now Theirs

One Dressed In An Impeccable Suit

With Impeccable Manners To Boot

The Other Still Dons His Heels

But Always Manages To Spill His Meals

And Those That Helped Their Rise To Glory

They Are A Whole Other Story

The Detective Who Was Such A Grump

The Barmaid Did Give A Good Thump

Then She Dragged Him Down The Aisle

Married They Have Been Awhile

And The PC Whose Views Did Change

His Uniform He Did Exchange

Now He Works In The Empire

Singing Like A Boy In Choir

And Through It All The Old Emperors Watch

Looking Down On Them Drinking Scotch


End file.
